Gasoline strainer



May 25, I925. 1,539,020

E. PAPASTEFANOU.

' GASOLINE STRAINER F'iledsphzi 924 a I v f: M #11 1 2i LPN 9 1 l. I

INVENTOR Patented May 26, 1925.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oF icE- .EMANUEL PAPA-STEFANOU, OF MOUNT VERNON, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO PERFEC- TION GAS FILTER CORPORATION, OF MOUNT VERNON, ,NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

GASOLINE STRAINER.

FANOU, a'citizen of Greece, residing at 141 ity when employed in a gasoline feed line South 3rd Ave, Mount Vernon, New York, have invented a new anduseful Gasoline Strainer, of which the following is a speci fication. 7

'My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in'gasoline strainers, which improvements are of particular utilleading from a main supply tankto the carbureter of an internal combustion engine, the purpose of the strainer being to filter out water and other impurities in the fuel before it reaches said carbureter.- While the strainer may be applied in various ways, it is of particular utility when employed with what is known as a vacuum feed system connection with the suction pressure of an engine to draw gasoline upfrom a main supply tank and into said vacuum tank, which latter is positioned above the carbureter of the engine, so that gasoline therein 'may flow by gravity therefrom down tothe carbureter. These vacuum tank constructions are well known and in very general use, and therefore need not be explained in detail herein. Suffice it to say that in such.

I tanks, valves are provided to put the interior alternately in' communication with a vacuum and atmosphere. Vhen used in this connection, my improved strainer has a selfclearing action, which has many advantages,

as will later appear.

In the accompanying drawings, in which I show a preferred form of the invention:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation, 'partly in sec tion, of my strainer together with parts of the fuel feed system shown in outline.

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

' I will first describe the strainer itself as shown in the drawings.

1-2 represents the upper and lower ends of the strainer casing, which ends are preferably made of metal. -3 represents a cylindrical side wall, which makes a gas-tight joint with the end members 1 and 2, so as to form a clo sure capable of holding gasoline. The side wall 3 is preferably made of thick glass, although this is not essential. 4 is a gasoline supply pipe, which leads into the top 1,- preferably near the center. 5 is a tube communicating with pipe 4. Thistube 5 may have threaded ends and may be used as shownto tie together the ends 1 and 2; The lower end of the tube 5 is preferably internally and externally threaded. On the outer thread is mounted a washer-like piece 5*, for the purpose hereinafter described. 6 is r a pet cook, the threaded end of which engages-the inside thread of the tube 5 at its lower end, so that it may assist in securing the 'parts, of the casing together, as well as act as a drain for the casing. Mounted on the upper part of r the tube 5 is a washer-shaped piece 7, which which uses a secondary tank functioning in has a depending annular flange. 8 is a tubular screen of fine wire mesh, one end of which rests within the flange of the washer which is secured in an annular groove in the periphery of the washer 5, while the upper part envelops the screen 8 and washer I 7 and tightly fits around the upper end of the tube 5. The function of the screen 8-is to' check the passage therethrough of solid particles, while the function of the chamois is to prevent the passage of water through the strainer on its way to the engine. In the side wall of the tube 5, and preferably at and near the lower end, are one or more holes 10. v

11 represents conventionally a portion of a so-called vacuum feed tank which, in common practice, is placed above the level of an engine carbureter (not shown) and constitutes a service tank.

12 represents a 1 portion of a main supply tank, which is usually located on the rear of an automobile ata lower level' than the vacuum tank.

The function of the latter is to draw a suptank 11 is connected by a service pipe 14 to g 'the head 1 of the strainer housing, the con:

nection preferably being rigid, so that said strainer may be conveniently supported by 6 and next-to said vacuum tank.

Operation: The operation of my ew strainer in the system which I have elected to show herein will be as follows: When suction pressure is created in the vacuum 19 tank 11 it will createia partial vacuum in the strainer chamber, thus causing asoline in the main supply tank 12 to fiow up through pipe 4 and thence through pipe and holes into the strainer. As the 1 strainer casing is filling up, the gas must .pass through the filtering elements 9 and 10, which function to check any impurities therein, whereby gasoline flowing from the strainer elements to the vacuum tank will 2 be clear and clean. After a suflicient quantity of gasoline has been drawn into the vacuum tank a vent valve, conventionally indicated at 16, will be automatically opened in the usual manner, which will have the .efi'ect of breaking the partial vacuum.

When this occurs the movement of gasoline through the strainer will be reversed and the same, by siphonio action, will fiow back to the supplytank 12, the clear gasoline passing through the straining and filtering elements 89 in a reverse direction, operating to clear the same. The extent to whichthe filtering chamber is actually emptied depends, of course, upon the height of the uppermost opening 10 in tube 5. It ispreferred that a small amount of gasoline shall remain in the filtering chamber during the period that the vent valve 16 is open. Thus,

the user may, at such a time, open the pet 4 cock 6 and draw off from the space within 'the filtering elements 8 and 9 any impurities that may have been deposited therein.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that in one operation the gasoline passes through the'filtering elements in one direction for the purpose of catching and restraining any impurities, whereas, 1n the reverse operationythe gasoline passes throughthe filtering elements in an opposite direction to dislodge any impurities that may have been lodged onthe filtering elements, which impurities may eitherfall to the bottom of the strainer casing or be carried back into the main supply tank 12. Since it is well known that water accumulating onthe surface of chamois will render it impervious to the passage of gasoline in one direction, this self-clearing.function is of great value and importance. In ordinary strainers em- 6 ploying a chamois filtering element, it he quently happens that after a comparatively short period of use one wall of the chamois becomes so covered with water and other impurities that gasoline will not flow freely therethrough, and it is necessary, at frequent intervals,xto open the strainer, remove the chamois, squeeze out the water and dry the same, so that it may be restored to a usable condition. By my improved construction it is rarely, if ever, necessary to remove either filtering element, because the self-clearing action, which occurs alternately with every filtering action, serves to attempted to illustrate such modifications as I I apprehend may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention,

since such modifications and changes will readily suggest themselves to mechanics skilled in the art, from an examination of my drawings and a reading of the foregoing description. For this reason I wish it understood that the appended claims are (in-- tended to cover and include all modifications and arrangements that embody in substance those features of novelty andutility which characterize my invention;

By the term gasoline I mean, of course,

to include any liquid fuel that is suitable for use in the apparatus described.

I claim:

1. In a gasoline strainer, a housing comprising a top piece, a bottom piece and a cylindrical glass sidepiece interposed between the top and bottom and heldthereby,

an upright tube connecting thetop and bottom pieces and having a side opening near the lower end thereof, a cylindrical filtering means surrounding the tube and extending from the bottom of the housing to a point near to the top thereof, said filtering means being spaced away from the tube and from the sidewall of the housing, a supply inlet leading into the upper end of the -tube, a

service outlet leading through the top from the space outside of said filtering means, and a drain connected to the bottom of the housing in communication with the space within said filtering means.

2. In a gasoline strainer, a housing comprising a toppiece, a bottom piece and a cylindrical glass side piece interposed between the top and bottom and held thereby, an upright tube connecting the top and bottom pieces and having a side opening near' the lower end thereof, a cylindrical filtering means surrounding the tube and extending from the bottom of the housing to. a point and a drain connected to the bottom of-the h near to the top thereof, said filtering means housing in communication with the space being spaced away from the tube and from within said filtering means, said filtering 10' the side wall of the housing,- a supply inlet means comprising a chamois and a tubulari leading into the upper end of the tube, a screen within said chamois; service outlet leading through thetop from v .the space outside of said filtering means, EMANUEL PAPASTEFANOU. 

